


Golden Floor

by TinkerTenorDoctorSpy



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Late Night Conversations, M/M, More Fluff, Sleepless nights, Stars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-04
Updated: 2013-09-04
Packaged: 2017-12-25 15:50:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 625
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/954937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TinkerTenorDoctorSpy/pseuds/TinkerTenorDoctorSpy





	Golden Floor

Julian Bashir's eyes opened at 0127 hours, blinking as he registered the absence of a certain Cardassian beside him.

He turned over, and saw Garak standing at the window, gazing out into the star-speckled endless void.

"Can't sleep?" he asked, sitting up.

"Doctor," Garak said softly, not looking at him, still staring out at the galaxies that surrounded them-in the direction of Cardassia Prime, Julian belatedly realized.

And he noticed something about the way Garak stood, a sort of resignedness, as if he'd given up something very dear to him-or was about to. Julian's heart froze. "Elim...what is it, love?" he asked cautiously, not sure what he was about to hear, but certain it couldn't be anything good-

Garak sighed. He finally turned to face the doctor, the stars throwing shadows on his body, so that for a single moment he looked the emotionless and blank figure of a statue, so majestic and terrible that Julian had to catch his breath. "Perhaps _this_ ," he spoke, gesturing to Julian's bare chest, "isn't the best of ideas..."

"What _?_ " Julian had to process the words for a moment, to make sure he'd heard right. " _Garak!_ " He jumped out of bed and, outraged, stalked up to where Garak was standing, as silent and still as only an agent of the Obsidian Order could be.

"If you think, " he whispered furiously, "for even a _minute_ , that I'm going to go back to the way things were-"

Garak silenced him with a finger to his lips and a stern glare. "Hear me out, Julian."

Julian fell silent at the use of his given name (he could count on one hand the number of times Garak had called him by it, either when something was very, very wrong or very, very _right_ ), and settled for a searing glare of his own.

"There are people," Garak continued, "who would stop at nothing to hurt me- _eliminate_ me as a threat, so to speak. If it came to their attention-if they _knew_ about you and I-" he broke off, taking a deep, shuddering breath, unable to meet the doctor's eyes. "My dear, you have to understand-I would never forgive myself..." Garak trailed off, pleading.

Julian said nothing, heart churning. He reached out, brushing Garak's cheek with the back of his hand. Garak leaned into the touch, his eyes closed.

"I would think you'd have learned by now," he finally spoke, lips quirking up in a small smile. "I'm not going anywhere-and you can forget your noble, self-sacrificing ideas, they're not going to save me-or _you_ , for that matter." Julian took a step closer, taking Garak's hand, entwining their fingers the way lovers on Cardassia did. "Haven't you realized yet?" he breathed. "I have _you_. I'm not afraid," he tightened his grip on Garak's hand, "of anything."

Garak laughed, the sound seeming empty. His eyes opened, and there was something sharp and broken glittering in them, looking out at Julian. He looked like nothing else at that moment than the man he used to be, the killer that still resided somewhere deep inside him. "Even _time_ , dearest?"

Julian met his eyes, unafraid. "We'll be fine, Elim." He grinned and kissed the Cardassian's lips, feeling him stiffen, then relax as Garak gave in, kissing him back. When they broke apart, he could see the monster that had shown itself in Garak's eyes had retreated, the tension in Garak's body draining away along with it as he pulled Julian close.

"My dear doctor," he murmured, sounding like himself again, "What _did_ I do to deserve you?"

Julian laughed, pulling him back into bed. "Surely you can think of _something_..."

~                            ~                              ~

_i'm not afraid of anything_

_even time_

_it'll eke away at everything_

_we'll be fine_

             - _snow patrol_


End file.
